Collards

Growing Collards

Collards are hardy and can tolerate low temperatures. They're also more tolerant of heat than some members of the cabbage family. In the South, get ahead of warm weather by planting collards from fall through March. In the North, you can get two crops by planting in early spring and again in July or August.

Pick collards while tender.

Collards like fertile, well-drained soil with a pH between 6.5 and 7.5. Collards are usually grown from transplants planted four to six weeks before the average date of last frost. Set transplants deeply if the stems are leggy or crooked to prevent the plants from becoming top heavy. Where there is a long cool period, seeds can be sown directly in the garden in the fall for a winter harvest. Sow seeds an inch deep and thin seedlings to 12 inches apart.

The time from planting to harvest is 75 to 85 days for transplants and 85 to 95 days for seeds. Collards become sweeter if harvested after a frost but harvest them before a hard freeze. In warmer areas, harvest the leaves from the bottom up before the leaves get tough.